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hobbitfreddie 's review for:
Road Back
by Erich Maria Remarque
After recently finishing All Quiet and it quickly becoming my favorites, I can say the sequel is just as good. Easily another favorite and made me want to read as much of Mr. Remarque as I can.
Mr. Remarque excels at writing almost poetically the struggles and hardships of war. This carries over to the new protagonist Ernst's transition to civilian life. There's a mix of the horrors of war from All Quiet to make it really feel like a sequel. And the continous theme of anti-war.
I loved this book for it's brilliant themes. Alot of the stuff really resiginated with me, and I feel like anyone can feel a bit wiser after reading this. There's alot of themes that can apply to everyday life. The book gets quite philosophical and exestential, which I very much liked. It's a very raw look at humanity.
The books is quite emotional and depressing, like All Quiet. It can be a bit hard to get through but the ending saves it.
I like the way the book's structured. There's alot of just Ernst checking in with his war buddies, and through that you see the different ways the war has affected everyone. The characters are quite well written, even though some of them don't appear for too long. Ernst, Willy, Ludwig, and Albert are the main characters we see. They are all fairly likeable with their own experiences, and I did finding myself growing attached to them. You really want them to get through the conflicts of the books. Also Tjaden is here. I like that at least one member of the All Quiet cast has an actual appearance in this book. Oddly Albert Kropp's fate is ambigious, as he doesn't make an appearance in it. I do wish we got to see what happened to it, but it may be best that we don't.
Everything feels important and connected too. Not just a basic slice of life.
There are alot of really great moments in this. All the deaths, the changes, the drama, etc. Early on Ernst's group encounter a group of American soldiers after the peace, I really liked that moment. Or just seeing Ernst and his buddies interact. I'm a sucker for good friendships, especially ones fostered in something as brutal as war.
The last part of the book is absoutely fantastic. That's all I'm going to say without spoiling anything.
Mr. Remarque excels at writing almost poetically the struggles and hardships of war. This carries over to the new protagonist Ernst's transition to civilian life. There's a mix of the horrors of war from All Quiet to make it really feel like a sequel. And the continous theme of anti-war.
I loved this book for it's brilliant themes. Alot of the stuff really resiginated with me, and I feel like anyone can feel a bit wiser after reading this. There's alot of themes that can apply to everyday life. The book gets quite philosophical and exestential, which I very much liked. It's a very raw look at humanity.
The books is quite emotional and depressing, like All Quiet. It can be a bit hard to get through but the ending saves it.
I like the way the book's structured. There's alot of just Ernst checking in with his war buddies, and through that you see the different ways the war has affected everyone. The characters are quite well written, even though some of them don't appear for too long. Ernst, Willy, Ludwig, and Albert are the main characters we see. They are all fairly likeable with their own experiences, and I did finding myself growing attached to them. You really want them to get through the conflicts of the books. Also Tjaden is here. I like that at least one member of the All Quiet cast has an actual appearance in this book. Oddly Albert Kropp's fate is ambigious, as he doesn't make an appearance in it. I do wish we got to see what happened to it, but it may be best that we don't.
Everything feels important and connected too. Not just a basic slice of life.
There are alot of really great moments in this. All the deaths, the changes, the drama, etc. Early on Ernst's group encounter a group of American soldiers after the peace, I really liked that moment. Or just seeing Ernst and his buddies interact. I'm a sucker for good friendships, especially ones fostered in something as brutal as war.
The last part of the book is absoutely fantastic. That's all I'm going to say without spoiling anything.